The effectiveness of eyespots and masquerade in protecting artificial prey across ontogenetic and seasonal shifts.

ABSTRACT: When constraints on antipredator coloration shift over the course of development, it can be advantageous for animals to adopt different color strategies for each life stage. Many caterpillars in the genus Papilio exhibit unique ontogenetic color sequences: for example, early instars that masquerade as bird feces, with later instars possessing eyespots. I hypothesize that larvae abandon feces masquerade in favor of eyespots due to ontogenetic changes in signaler size. This ontogenetic pattern also occurs within broader seasonal shifts in background color and predator activity. I conducted predation experiments with artificial prey to determine how potential signaling constraints (specifically size and season) shape predation risk, and consequently the expression of ontogenetic color

SUBMITTER: Postema EG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9450170 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature